Experimentation
by Kyra Rivers
Summary: It started with a kiss. (ThatzxRune, RunexTintlet)


_**Title:** Experimentation_

_**Summary:** It started with a kiss. (ThatzxRune, RunexTintlet)_

_**Notes:** I was having a dicussion with Ryver-chan about the difficulty of plausible shounen ai in Dragon Knights between the main characters. Considering that two of the three main characters have significant others of the opposite sex (and the third has one all but ready to shack up), it would be really hard to make in-character DK slash. Especially Rune slash, because he's deeply in love with Tintlet and has been forever. So sadly, Ryver-chan and I came to the conclusion that Rune slash was next-to-impossible, while Rath and Thatz slash was very hard as well._

_Of course, my dear muse Chiriko took that as a challenge, and so this Rune/Thatz story-drabble thing was born. Wonderful! This fanfic is for you, Ryver-chan, for being the one to inspire Chiriko into writing this story. Enjoy!_

_**Disclaimer:** If I owned Dragon Knights, Rune would be unattatched. Not because I don't like Tintlet - and I really, really do; she's wonderful and I adore her , but because it would make slashing so much easier. SO much._

* * *

**Experimentation**

It started with a kiss.

A tentative, probing kiss, and his back was pressed against the bark of the tree, which was sharp and hard against his skin. The kiss continued and it was warm, pressing more firmly now that he wasn't fighting back, making him forget about the tree and the chill in the air. He could feel his suddenly numb legs and the hands that rested gently on his shoulders and he wondered why he wasn't pushing them away.

Rune didn't want to push the hands away. He didn't want to stop Thatz from kissing him, though he knew, _he knew_ that Tintlet was out there and waiting and _dammit_ he _loved_ her-

But Thatz was here and he was warm and soft and-

Truth be told, it started long before the kiss.

Rune had been on the road for quite a long time with his fellow Dragon Knights. Rath, whose excessive demon hunting was so childlike and yet so creepy, but who had grown on Rune so swiftly that Rune was used to Rath before he even realized it. And then Thatz arrived, lazy and irrepressible, doing nothing more than prodding Rath off-task and teasing Rune about his appearance.

It was the teasing that meant something, Rune supposed, the constant references to his hair and his girlfriend and his eyes; how _girly_ he looked and oh, wouldn't he look cute cross-dressed? Rune was a pretty person, but he was an elf and had never thought much on the subject. It was not a matter of beauty on the outside that the elves concerned themselves with, but on the inside, and it was a shift trying to see things from a more human perspective.

And then there was Thatz, one drunken night, who gave Rune a long look and murmured, "You're beautiful."

"You're drunk," Rune replied coolly, sipping a water and staring at the foul drink in Thatz's hand with disdain. "You don't know what you're saying."

"But you are," Thatz insisted, shifting forward until he was close enough to make Rune self-conscious. "You're pretty. And not just like a girl. You're just - you're pretty. Really pretty."

Rune shrugged. "I'm an elf. Technically." He wasn't anymore, but it didn't change his looks. He didn't _really_ know what Thatz was talking about, not exactly, because he had been raised to view beauty in other ways than appearance, and he was no prettier than anyone else. It was a perplexing idea, the thought of purely physical lust.

"But you-" Thatz broke off. "I... I don't know."

Now it was three months and multiple adventures later, and Thatz was pushing Rune up against a tree and kissing him.

It began quite simply. They were in the woods, absentmindedly searching for Rath, who had run off earlier to hunt demons. Neither knight was worried, as Rath was generally able to take care of himself and he had to get hungry eventually.

There was an exchange of words:

"Do you suppose?"

"What?"

"Have you ever kissed a guy?"

And after Rune had smacked him, blushing, Thatz persisted.

"No, really. Have you?" Thatz's eyes were downcast, staring at the cold-hardened ground.

"...no," Rune answered honestly.

It wasn't teasing, this time.

"Me neither," Thatz said. "And I - well..."

"What?"

"Is it wrong that I want to try?"

It was not often that there would be deep soul-searching among them. Rath was deeply secluded about anything _actually_ important to him, and Thatz followed his example and kept his past under wraps. Rune was the most serious and the most open of all of them, but he knew how to be quiet and did not pressure anything. Their camaraderie was thick and tangible without ever actually scratching the surface of their pasts.

So when Thatz posed the question, Rune was thrown off-guard, perplexed. He was not sure how to handle the query and stumbled though his thoughts, pulling them together rather haphazardly. He was silent for a few minutes before he felt satisfied with his reply.

"I'm not sure," Rune said. He never claimed it was a _good_ reply. He added, "I've never really thought about it."

He hadn't. He'd always had Tintlet.

Thatz did not continue the conversation, and they traveled in silence for a few moments. After a bit, Thatz stopped, and Rune stopped with him, glancing at him curiously.

Then:

"Wanna try?"

"Huh?"

And Thatz reached up and touched his cheek - gently, like he would a lover - and pressed Rune up against a nearby tree and kissed him, warm and soft against his mouth.

And Rune did not push him away.

Thatz was beginning to press harder now that Rune hadn't hit him, and Rune felt himself beginning to respond. It wasn't the same as kissing Tintlet but it wasn't bad; it was rather like the difference between peaches and curry. One was sweet and soft and familiar, while the other new and shocking and unusual. And Rune was beginning to get a bit overwhelmed by it all.

Logic was screaming at him to pull away, to run away, to hit Thatz for trying such an audacious thing, but Rune was quite certain logic could go to hell. It was a nice feeling to be kissed, even if it wasn't Tintlet, who Rune loved so much it hurt. It wasn't Tintlet, but it _was_ Thatz, who was probably his best friend along with Rath.

And he was just starting to get into it, the feeling of Thatz's mouth on his, body against body, when Thatz pulled away. Thatz's face was flushed, though Rune couldn't tell if it was from embarrassment or arousal. He was fairly sure it was the former.

"I'm sorry," Thatz muttered, expression distinctly abashed. "I - dammit, I know you have a girlfriend and-"

"Thatz," Rune interjected. Thatz didn't listen.

"-and I just wanted to know, but I don't have many friends who'd go for it, except you and - and maybe Rath, but I don't know-"

"Thatz," Rune said sharply.

Thatz stopped abruptly, staring at Rune in horror. Rune abruptly realized that Thatz thought he was upset.

"I don't care," Rune insisted immediately. He smiled kindly, trying to put his friend at ease, and added, "I'm not mad."

"You... aren't?" Thatz looked incredulous, staring at Rune with wary eyes. "Really?"

"Really." And because he was confused about it himself, he mentioned, "I kind of liked it, anyway."

"You did?" Thatz blinked widely, staring at Rune with surprise. "But - but you have a girlfriend! Tinny-something-or-other, right? She's your girlfriend!"

Rune nodded. He decided it was time to step away from the tree and did so, brushing away a few wood chips from his shirt. His cheeks were warm and he knew he was embarrassed, but he replied, "Her name is Tintlet, and I love her. I don't _love_ you, Thatz." He doubted Thatz would be crestfallen and indeed, he wasn't; rather, the thief was giving him a confused stare. Rune continued, "I liked the kiss. I like you, and you're a decent kisser, and it was nice."

He sounded a lot more secure than he felt, but Rune was very good at pretending all was well. At least when it came to other's feelings. Thatz had stopped looking like guilt personified and was beginning to look more like _Thatz_, like Rune's fellow knight who was rude and brash and make obnoxious comments about cross-dressing.

And Rune wasn't sure how he felt about the kiss, or about Thatz, but he could still remember the pressure of Thatz's lips against his and the closeness of their bodies, and the pain of missing Tintlet had lessened just a little bit. It was nice, to forget for a moment, that she was trapped and he could not save her, not yet.

Thatz smiled at him. They began to walk again, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

"Rune?"

"Mm?"

"So, later... could I kiss you again?"

"Ask properly next time, and we'll see."


End file.
